During her official visit to the Republic of Latvia, Roberta METSOLA, EP President, gives a speech to the Seima (Latvian National Parliament). This transcription is a result of an automatic process. Please check against delivery.

statement

speech

METSOLA, Roberta (EPP, MT, EP President)

EU - Latvia (T)

Riga

Latvia

president's agenda

Address by Roberta METSOLA, EP President to the Saeima - Parliament of the Republic of Latvia

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, Thank you very much. Dear Madam Speaker, dear members of the same idea, members of the European Parliament, I wanted to start this address by saying Thank you, Valdis, to you all and everyone you represent. This country, Latvia, to me will always be a symbol of hope, of transformation and of resilience.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, Of the enduring proof in people and a nation to overcome the odds, to resist, to lead. To break free from the shackles of history, to join the European Union and shape our common future. The qualities and values that Europe stands for are personified in the people of Latvia. 2022 marks an important centenary.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, When we celebrate your democracy, your respect of human dignity and freedom, your freedom to choose your destiny. 100 years ago, delegates of the same are gathered for the first Parliament meeting of the Republic of Latvia. Together, they adopted the Constitution of the Republic of Latvia in a freely elected assembly.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, After five decades of occupation in May of 1990, the Latvian Supreme Council in Riga broke away from the Soviet Union. The Latvian state was restored and the 1922 constitution reinstated. That took courage. It took belief, and it took strength of principle. So I would like to pay tribute to the 138 women and men parliamentarians for their extraordinary bravery in standing up. It is that spirit that we see in Ukraine today.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, It is that political courage that we need to recapture as we enter the next phase of this unjust, illegal and unacceptable Russian invasion of a sovereign nation in Europe. We must be clear. What we are witnessing, is an attempt by the Kremlin to rewrite history, to redraw the Iron Curtain that Latvians helped break down and re-establish countries back into spheres of influence. This is not acceptable to me and it is not acceptable to the European Union.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, We were swift in adopting, far reaching and hard hitting sanction packages against Russia and Belarus. We were quick in restricting access to the EU's capital and financial markets. We took action to reduce our dependencies drastically on Russian energy. We closed access to our waters, ports, airspace and transport space to Russian owned vehicles. We approved Ukraine and Moldova as candidate countries for EU membership.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, We welcomed Ukrainians into our homes and our hearts and military, financial and humanitarian aid continues to flow. We are proud to stand by and stand with Ukraine and we need to go further still. In my first speech as European Parliament President, I committed that our institution will never be neutral between the fire and the fire truck, and we must continue to help Ukraine win.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, This means holding Russia's regime to account for war crimes that kill civilians indiscriminately. This means pushing for even more sanctions. This means heightening security across Latvia's borders. This means providing even more financial and military aid to Ukraine, including the tanks and the air defence systems that they need.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, It also means tightening cross-border links between the three Baltic countries to deliver on the high speed infrastructure, such as the Project Rail Baltica, which is now a security urgency to help military mobility. It is also true that in the last eight months, the centre of gravity of Europe's security and defence decision making has shifted to the Baltic region, with Latvia at its very centre.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, You know very well who we are dealing with. Latvia's long standing warnings about Russia were correct, and you understand more than most that while we must push for peace and we will, it must be a real peace. Peace with freedom, peace with justice, peace with accountability.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, Today, Latvia leads the European Union in addressing and countering the dissemination of Kremlin led propaganda and hybrid threats. And Latvia's experience and leadership will be crucial on the net steps that Europe must take. First of all, to tackle serious threats to our democratic values and European Union prosperity and peace. Together, we must build a real security and defence union, complementary to NATO,.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, Latvia has shown Ukraine a massive wave of solidarity. Latvia also shows Europe how both national leaders and citizens can unite to oppose a brutal autocratic power. But more European solidarity is needed. This is very important with regards to face common energy and economic crises. The European Union and this is our largest challenge we have, must act as one to address energy prices, disruption to energy supplies and double digit inflation.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, Because if we do not act together now, the negative spiralling knock on effects will see the wellbeing of European Union businesses, households and citizens impacted. Our banks and financial sector are already feeling the pressure and at the same time rapidly rising interest rates will wipe away the value of people's homes, salaries, pensions and national budgets.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, Our economy managed to recover after the pandemic, thanks to our economic governance framework and our next generation EU. It took a lot of courage to do that. It took a lot of difficult decisions to be taken. But we also know that debt is not discretionary. We will need to pay back. And the only way to do that is to unite and set the EU economy back on a stable path of growth.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, Dear friends, we are entering a time where more Europe and more European Union integration will be necessary. Latvia and nine other states joined the European Union on that fateful day in 2004. Since then, we have witnessed the transformative effect of union membership not only on our national markets or local communities, but on Europe as a whole. We changed together and we must remain together.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, And here the relationship between parliaments is so important to maintain and to strengthen. I am committed to improving the links between the European Parliament and national parliaments, and I know that there is a lot that such institutions can achieve together. Europe's future lies in its very unique ability to adapt with speed, with fortitude and with unity. This is why, to me, Europe has always represented the future. Change. Possibility. Hope.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, A few years ago with Brexit, we saw many political forces in different countries say that it was better to leave Europe. We thought that there would be a domino effect. We saw different parts of different countries saying, Let's do the same. Why not? Instability is good. No one says that anymore. No one says that anymore.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, On the contrary, we have a list that gets longer and longer of countries that want to join. There is hope in our joint European future for our young people across our continent, because it is only together that Europe can rise, Madam Speaker, to meet the challenges of our time and the next 100 years. Thank you very much for listening.